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RAC displays local artwork

An upcoming exhibit includes art not only for all ages but from all ages.

The Riverside Art Center, in Wapakoneta has their fourth annual Greater Wapakoneta Community Art Exhibit ready to go for their opening reception on Friday.

Riverside Art Center Gallery Director Anna Fisher said there is a variety of artworks displayed during this exhibit which will be shown until Sept. 29.

“I think this exhibit will show that there are established and up-and-coming artists in the community,” Fisher said. “It’s really cool to see their artwork, and I’m very excited to see how far they are going to go.”

This juried show has two judges, Jordan Knepper, of Gateway Arts Council, and Bill Sullivan, of ArtSpace Lima, to judge the 72 artworks on display.

Fisher said the pair were thorough with their judging, and they were impressed with the artwork that was displayed.

“Many of the submissions we had to look at were conceptually original and gave evidence of experienced craftsmanship,” Sullivan said. “The works selected make up the best of those two qualities. Taken together, the works in this exhibit collectively figure the Wapakoneta community’s statement that art ‘matters.’”

Knepper noted that he looks for artwork that evokes an emotion.

“I focus on things like the balance of positive and negative, space, value, movement, and many more criteria, but after the basics are covered, then I look for pieces that not only are technically good, but also go beyond the obvious,” Knepper said.

A Best of Show, four $100 awards, four $50 awards and 10 honorable mentions will be given out.

Along with the two judges, the center has invited 25 members of the community to help judge the artwork. Ten Community Leader award ribbons will be given out during the opening reception.

“The community judges enjoyed the artwork,” Fisher said.

Between the oil, acrylic, watercolor, drawing, 3-D and mixed media, Fisher noted that there is something for everyone at this exhibit, as they have received a variety of pieces.

In addition, the center’s administrators added a new category to this year’s exhibit — a children’s category.

“We got a variety from 3-year-olds to 16-year-olds,” Fisher said.

The youth category is not judged.

“So far, I’ve received such great compliments about the show,” Fisher said. “We have a huge variety. I’m very happy with the quality of the work. There are some fantastic pieces in the show.”